Napoli Femminile 2023/24: The causes of their stuttering start and what must change to avoid relegation – scout report

Napoli Women are struggling to guarantee their survival in Serie A Women following a bad season start with only negative results so far. It is true that Napoli achieved excellent results last season in Serie B and were able to win their promotion to Serie A with merit. 

Yet, this start of the season has not gone the way Biagio Seno and his staff wouldve wanted, enduring six losses in six games so far, including one loss against Milan, one against Inter Milan and another against Fiorentina, knowing that they are yet to play against Juventus and Roma.

Finishing in the last spot in the standings at the end of the first phase does not mean that Napoli will be relegated to Serie B since all of the five last teams in the standings will have to go through the playout phase or the relegation round, which would determine who will drop and who will stay in Serie A.

Nevertheless, failing to get a fair number of points in the regular phase and especially failing to win or draw against teams of a similar level can make things a lot more problematic for Napoli since consecutive losses can quickly deteriorate the players morale, confidence and motivation levels. 

This negative psychological impact can also be crucial to the team during the relegation phase, eventually affecting their performances and ability to win games. Therefore, identifying weaknesses and working on improving what is going wrong for the team will be highly essential during the following period so as to get out of the dark zone and start winning some points to get the players individual and collective confidence back.

In this regard, our tactical analysis article in the form of a scout report will aim at identifying Napolis main attacking and defensive weaknesses, relying on extensive analysis of the teams tactics while assessing Senos player choices and exploring how to find the best possible formation.

Napolis defensive weaknesses 

From a defensive perspective, we can argue that Napoli do not concede many goals per game, as they have never conceded more than two goals per match during this season so far. With an average of one to two conceded goals, Napoli have been able to guard their goal well and avoid conceding painful results. Nevertheless, the teams defensive organisation needs a lot of work in order to be able to make clean sheets during games and help the team get some draws, and they might win some games if the attacking performance improves as well!

Avoiding losses against teams with similar levels will be essential for Napoli in the coming period. And in order to achieve that goal, the teams midfield defence will have to be much more concentrated when having the ball in their own half. The lack of chemistry and the misunderstanding between the players sometimes cost the team a lot, as such errors usually result in conceded goals.

One of Napolis most remarkable defensive mistakes this season occurred against Como in a way that could have been avoided. Susanna Joy Friedrichs attempted to pass the ball to her closest teammate in this picture since she was subject to pressing from Comos winger. 

As a result, the centre-back Paola Di Marino was surprised by the pass and strangely did not attempt to control the ball, letting it reach Comos completely unmarked striker. Martina Di Bari was not even aware of the strikers quick movement without the ball, and therefore, she noticed that movement when it was too late.

Ultimately, Napolis defensive organisation lacked chemistry, attention to opposing movements and continuous tight marking on this occasion, and this failure to defend well against Comos attacking efforts cost them the three points at the end of the day.

Credits: FIGC Calcio Femminile

Moreover, conceding goals due to poor clearances and inaccurate passes made by defenders in dangerous areas is something that needs to be reviewed by Seno as soon as possible, knowing that clearances always need to be executed towards relatively more secure spots such as both flanks or the opponents half.

This example clearly highlights Napolis lack of defensive experience when dealing with complex situations that require fluidity and reasonable yet quick reactions. Paola Di Marino was unable to clear the ball away in the needed way here as she didnt even look at her surroundings before executing the pass, which led to providing a pass to the opponent, who found herself on a clear path to find the net.